Stronger
by Malakye-Dragolf
Summary: *Title of story may change* An unusual anomaly appears in Wutai and Cloud is called in to investigate it by a worried Yuffie. Cloud gets dragged into the Anomaly. Will Cloud ever get back? Would he really want to?
1. Chapter 1

**STRONGER**

_**Chapter 1**_

The familiar rumble of Fenir soothed Cloud as he sped through the familiar valleys and hills of Wutai. Yuffie had phoned him asking for him to come urgently. Yuffie had sounded deathly serious, no her usual self, no...there was a definite fear hidden amongst her words but she wouldn't elaborate at the time. She would only ask him to come as quickly as possible...when did Yuffie ever ask? The young Ninja would always tell you or demand you do something. Out of loyalty to his friend he more or less dropped everything and began making his way over to Wutai, truthfully he would have come just to find out what had Yuffie so spooked.

Thankful that he had brought along a few Materia with him on his latest trip to Coral while delivering some supplies for the reconstruction of the town. Barret had been using the money from the oil wells to rebuild his old town and from the looks of it it will be bigger and better than ever.

Cloud finally pulled into Wutai, stopping and dismounting his bike at the entrance of the town. Cloud had always admired the peaceful serenity of the town and didn't want to disturb it with the powerful roaring engine that was mounted in Fenir. Slipping First Tsurugi into its harness across his back Cloud grabbed the small pouch of Materia that he had brought along with him and attached it to his belt before beginning to look for Yuffie. Cloud didn't have to look for long.

"CLOUD!" Instantly Cloud located the source of the shout and saw Yuffie waving at him from the path leading to the mountains. Cloud walked round the connecting bridges with his usual calm demeanour and up to the frantic Ninja. "Cloud thank god you came!"

"What's the matter?"

"It's..." Yuffie paused as she struggled to find the right words. "I can't explain it. You need to come see it for yourself."

"All right then, Lead the way." Yuffie smiled and spun on her heel and began to sprint her way up the mountain, Cloud however walked calmly after her knowing that the young Ninja wouldn't leave him behind.

"COME ON CLOUD! HURRY YOUR ASS UP!" Yuffie huffed for the hundredth time that day. "HOW THE HELL DO YOU GET ANY BUSINESS BEING THIS SLOW?"

Cloud didn't answer he casually walked up to the cave Yuffie was standing next to. "Is this it?"

"Yeah. Cloud just be careful in here okay? We lost a good number of Ninja in here yesterday when I decided to call you."

"What is it? A monster?" Cloud asked calmly. If it was just a monster then Yuffie would be able to handle it, she had proven her fighting skills when travelling with them to defeat Sephiroth.

"No, no! Nothing like that! It's just weird...don't know how to explain it."

Cloud didn't press for further details, instead he placed his hand on the hilt of First Tsurugi and began making his way inside. His mako enhanced eyes quickly adjusted to the dim light of cave allowing him to see. There was nothing special about this cave until he turned round a corner and saw a rippling blue energy in the far corner of the cave. Cloud turned back to Yuffie who wore a concerned expression. Turning back to the rippling blue energy Cloud slowly approached it remembering Yuffie saying that they had lost some people to this thing although there were no bodies in the cave.

The Energy sprouted from the ground and formed a egg shape as it rose from the ground coming to about 4 feet in height, the edges glowed with energy, mako more than likely. The anomaly rippled like water would when it rained, constant ripples disturbing its surface although there was no rain here. Leaning closer to get a better look he was stopped as someone grabbed his arm, his other arm instinctively grabbed the hilt of First Tsurugi and he spun round seeing Yuffie with a fear filled expression.

"Don't get too close Cloud. It's not safe." Yuffie pleaded, Cloud released his grip on First Tsurugi and softened his expression and gave a nod which seemed to relax Yuffie some what. He was about to turn his attention back to the strange glowing anomaly when there was a surge of blue light from behind him and he turned round just in time to be consumed by the light, last thing he heard was Yuffie screaming.

Clouds eyes fluttered open and he sat up and gripped his head as a surge of pain shot through his head. It passed after a few moments and he slowly stood up and looked around his surroundings. Light filtered through the overcast sky making the waste land he was in even more morbid looking. Where was he? It took a couple of minutes until he realised he was in the wastes that surrounded Midgar. Why didn't he recognise it sooner? Or more to the point how the hell did he get here?

Memories of the cave came flooding back and Cloud panicked as he remembered Yuffie's scream. Instantly scouring the nearby area for any signs of the Ninja Cloud found nothing. Fear for his comrade gripped at his chest and he pulled out his PHS from his pocket and dialled her number.

'_The Number you have dialled has not been recognised. Please try entering the number again._'

Frustrated and worried Cloud cursed silently. Cloud knew that Yuffie could look after herself but her scream as they were engulfed in that light worried him. Her scream...it wasn't one of pain it was one of fear. That made him feel a little better but not much. At least he knew she wasn't hurt by the light, he had made it through unscathed after all but who knows where she ended up or how long he'd been unconscious...if she ended up somewhere dangerous and unconscious then she could already be...NO! There wasn't even any proof that she got pulled in with him, she had been gripping his arm so if she had been pulled in surely she would have ended up in the same place as him?

Tired of the thoughts he pinched the bridge of his nose in an attempt to prevent the approaching headache he got from over thinking things and pushed the thoughts to the back of his mind and focused on his current situation. Climbing up a nearby hill Midgar came into view only it wasn't as Cloud remembered it, this Midgar wasn't in ruins, it looked...brand new. Even from this distance you could see that the tower that served as Shin-Ra's headquarters was a hive of activity with all the lights that were on.

"What the hell is going on!" Cloud cursed out loud. Deciding standing there would not answer any of his questions Cloud began walking towards the city hoping that this was just some sort of dream and he hadn't woken up yet.

Getting into the city hadn't been that difficult and now Cloud found himself in the slums. The smell of decaying earth and mako filled his nose making him scrunch up his face in disgust. The smell still existed when this place was a ruin but it hadn't been this strong since the reactors had been shut down. But now the reactors were up and running and people once again inhabited the city. Had he gone back in time? Midgar was in ruins but now it was like it had been at its height before Meteor, it made sense...at least a little bit.

Cloud wandered aimlessly until his feet managed to take him to the church. Thoughts were flying through his mind. If he really was back in time did that mean Aries was still alive? Pausing for several long minutes at the door Cloud fought with his thoughts. He wanted to see Aeris again but if he had truly gone back in time then he would run the risk of changing the time line...changing the time line...could he really do it and change it for the better?

The thought sent a surge of courage through Cloud and he pushed open the door and walked in. The scent of flowers in the air was evident and a gentle light flowed in the windows. Casting his eyes about he saw that the flowers had once again taken their rightful place in the centre of the church instead of the pool of water that had been there in his time line but the church was in fact empty, Aries was no where to be seen. Walking up to the flowers he knelt next to them and touched them, letting his fingers trail across them to confirm that they were in fact real and not an illusion.

A foot step caught Clouds attention, barely heard if it wasn't for his enhanced hearing and on reflex Cloud spun round and instinctively grasped at First Tsurugi. Upon laying eyes upon his would be assailant Cloud froze. Aries stood there with a worried expression on her face but seeing him hesitate Aeris smiled.

"Hello." She said grinning at him. "Sorry I didn't mean to scare you."

"No...don't worry about it. It was my fault." Cloud replied and released his grasp of his sword. His words barely a whisper as he laid eyes on his long lost friend.

"I was worried you might hurt the flowers. You don't see many flowers in Midgar any more but they grow here with no problems." Aeris said as she calmly walked past Cloud and began to tend to the flowers. Cloud just stood there silent, unable to take his eyes off of the woman before him.

"What's your name?"

"Huh? What?"

"Your name? Don't you have a name?" She asked, her tone laced with a mild sense of humour at his reaction.

"It's Cloud."

"Well nice to meet you Cloud. My name is Aeris." She smiled at him again before turning back to the flowers. Cloud moved over to a nearby bench and watched her. After a while she saw him staring at her.

"What? Do I have something on my face?"

"No..sorry...you just remind me a lot of some one...some one I knew."

"This some one, where they precious to you?"

"Yes, but I couldn't protect them...and in the end they ended up saving...me." There was an awkward silence but Aeris broke it by humming while tending the flowers. Cloud let the sound of Aries voice sooth him and he felt himself relax, he hadn't realised how tense he was, he hadn't felt this relaxed in years.

Cloud opened his eyes and found himself still in the church. So it wasn't a dream. He had fallen asleep to the sound of Aries humming. He had felt a lot better than he had in a long time. Looking around he couldn't see Aries and had assumed that she had gone home, it was late.

What was he going to do now? He couldn't hang around here forever, not if he was going to change things. If he hung around Midgar too long he might eventually bump into himself...or what about Zack? The thought made Clouds heart race but it was quickly squashed. Aries didn't look far off the age that he first met her and Zack and himself had been trapped in the Shin-Ra Mansion for years, it was entirely possible that Zack had already escaped and they were on their way here right now.

Standing bolt upright and sprinting out of the church, Cloud ran as fast as he could towards the spot where Zack had been killed and where he himself had been spared by some cruel twist of fate, it was Zack who should have survived. Zack who should be here instead of him. Zack who should have saved the world from Sephiroth.

Cloud soon saw the gate and reached into the pouch that held his Materia and expertly slipped it into his bracer on his wrist and charged a Lightning spell. Launching the spell straight at the metallic gate he blew a hole in it large enough for someone to slip threw, the blast took out the guards at the same time. Not breaking his stride Cloud leapt through the hole which glowed red hot around the edges.

Cloud sprinted across the wastes towards the spot he knew all too well, it was the place Cloud had buried his friend, the place that his friend had died. It was dark but that didn't slow Cloud down, after Meteor Cloud had more or less taken up home in the church and visited the grave daily when he wasn't away doing a delivery on another continent so he knew the route like the back of his hand and knew what direction to go even if he had been blind folded.

Cloud had been running know for 15 minutes solid, and he had finally managed to pass through his panicked state of mind to think clearly. There was no way to know that today was the day that Zack was killed. Hell, that could still be a year from now maybe even two or perhaps it had already happened, he slowed slightly but his pace remained at a level where any one but a fully fledged SOLDIER would struggle to keep up for too long.

The hill came into view, even though Zack's Sword was not standing proudly at the top didn't mean Cloud wouldn't recognise it. A burst of gun fire shot a surge of fear through Cloud. It couldn't be happening! He wouldn't let it happen! Picking up speed again Cloud ran full pelt towards the gun fire. In the distance Cloud could make out a figure slicing through a squad of soldiers with a larger sword, a sword he would never forget, a sword he was very familiar with, the same sword he had used to stop Sephiroth.

He could see Zack running to the top of the hill where he crouched as if to check something on the ground, or someone. The realisation struck a cold feeling of dread through him, it was him! Cloud hadn't slowed down and he saw another group of soldiers appear and running towards Zack. Zack saw them and began to stand to face them but they were already about to fire!

"NO! ZACK!" Cloud screamed pulling out First Tsurugi from behind him.

Zack heard someone cry his name but was unable to react to it as he saw the muzzles of the soldiers rifles flare. There was no time to dodge! Zack clenched his eyes shut and awaited the pain if the bullets tearing into his flesh, but that never came, instead Zack heard the bullets strike something metal and he opened his eyes and saw a figure standing in front of him with a massive sword similar to his own, but the most surprising part of all this was the spiky head of blond hair that he'd recognise anywhere.

"Cloud?" Zack asked shocked, the name no more than a whisper.

More bullets struck the sword that was held out in front of the blond and Zack was about to react when he spotted the familiar glow of a charging spell coming from the bracer on the blonds wrist. A moments pause in the firing of the rifles as their assailants needed to reload was all that was needed and without a moments hesitation Cloud fired the spell at the squad of Shin-Ra soldiers, a huge burst of lightning fired from the blonds hand and obliterated the squad with devastating ease leaving a smouldering crater in its wake.

It took a moment for Cloud's ears to stop ringing from the spell, the dying screams of the men had been drowned out by the roar from the sheer power of the spell, Cloud had been so panicked that he had thrown out the most powerful spell possible with his mastered Materia when a level 2 spell would have done it but Cloud didn't want to take any chances.

"Cloud? That you buddy?" Cloud froze. Zack's voice sending shivers down his spine. Hesitantly Cloud looked over his shoulder his eyes locking with those of Zack's. "Cloud...it really is you..." Zack stuttered incredulously before a huge grin burst from his face. "Cloud! Man I thought I was a goner! Thank god you recovered! And where in the hell did you get that sword?"

Cloud remained silent, he couldn't bring himself to speak. He had done it, saved his best friend. But Zack didn't realise that he wasn't who he thought he was. Yes he was Cloud but not the Cloud that Zack knew.

"Zack..." Cloud stuttered and continued to stare at the black haired SOLDIER.

"What? Why you staring at me like that...Cloud?" Zack's face was a awash with emotions and Cloud could easily follow them because of how expressive Zack truly was, it was one of the things about the man that Cloud appreciated, because he wasn't like that himself, keeping his emotions hidden for the most part at least. Zack went from happy to confused and after a while of the two staring at each other a glimmer of fear showed in Zack's eyes which magnified when Zack turned round to see the still unconscious form of Cloud lying on the ground behind him before turning to face the Cloud standing before him. Zack readied his sword to fight but didn't move to attack, he was trying desperately to work out what the hell was going on.

"WHO ARE YOU!" Zack shouted. Cloud remained still, First Tsurugi still in his hand but it was lowered to the ground held in a non threatening way. "WHO THE HELL ARE YOU!"

"Zack...it's me, Cloud."

"You're not Cloud! HE'S CLOUD!" Zack yelled motioning to the still form behind him.

"Zack..." Cloud took a step forward but was met by Zack's sword coming at him but Cloud easily blocked it. Zack shoved Cloud away and instantly was back on the attack, swinging his massive sword around like it weighed nothing. Cloud blocked each one of his attacks, Zack was strong, no doubt about that but compared to Sephiroth's power this was nothing. After a several attacks their blades locked again, Zack trying to over power Cloud but Cloud wasn't budging.

"Zack please I just want to talk!" Cloud pleaded.

"THEN TELL ME WHO THE HELL YOU ARE!"

"It's me Cloud! Please Zack you have to believe me!"

"YOU CAN'T BE CLOUD! CLOUD IS OVER THERE UNCONSCIOUS! YOU MUST BE ONE OF HOJO'S EXPERIMENTS!"

Several memories of the time spent while Hojo experimented on him flashed through Cloud's mind and Cloud felt the undeniable hatred for that man grow in the pit of his stomach and he lashed out at his friend shoving him back wards with all his might. Zack back flipped threw the air and landed on his feet and skidded backwards driving the Buster Sword into the ground to slow himself to a spot. Zack looked at Cloud in shock but beyond the shove Cloud had not moved at all, there was a glint of anger in Cloud's eyes.

"I am not one of Hojo's experiments! I am Cloud Strife! I killed that man years ago and if I ever get the chance I will do it again!" Cloud growled.

"Kill him again? What the hell are you talking about?"

"Zack...I'm from the future."


	2. Chapter 2

**STRONGER**

_**Chapter 2**_

"Zack...I'm from the future!"

Zack stared blankly at Cloud as his mind tried to process the information. The confusion was evident on the face of the former SOLDIER 1st Class. Cloud could almost read what was going through his mind as he stared into Zack's eyes.

"From the future...seriously?" Zack's face contorted as if the idea was ridiculous but there was something else, deep in Zack's eyes, the want to believe. Of course part of Zack would want to believe it, it made this whole impossible situation make sense...at least as much sense as anyone could make of it. How else could you explain why an older, stronger Cloud was standing in front of you when his younger self was lying helpless on the ground a few feet away?

"Yes." Cloud answered firmly, not bothering to elaborate and confuse Zack further at this point.

"How?"

"I don't know how or even why I got here but I just am."

"Well...lets say I believe you. What happens next?" Zack's stance dropped slightly showing his willingness to fight falter.

"I try and change the future, for the better."

"Well okay then. I'm going to along with this for now but don't believe I trust you yet, even if you did probably save my life." Zack said placing the buster sword on his back. Clouds face hardened at his words and Zack saw this and the gravity of the situation hit him. "You mean...I really was going to die?"

Cloud didn't answer but cast his gaze away from his friend to ground. Clouds silence was all the answer Zack needed. Zack paled slightly and turned towards his sick companion, Clouds younger self. He knew every time he went into battle that there was the chance that he would die, he had come to accept that much at least. But to actually be told that he should for all intents and purposes be dead was a little much for him.

"Well Cloud, I guess I owe you one...even if you haven't actually saved my life yet." Zack said, a chuckle following at the sheer impossibility of it. Turning back to the older version of his friend and seeing the pained look in his eyes along with the ever so subtle smile tugging at the corners of his mouth Zack knew then, in his heart at least, that this Cloud wasn't lying. Zack grinned back at him with that over enthusiastic smile that belonged only to Zack.

"Well then...Cloud...we should get...Cloud some where safe. Man, this is going to be as confusing as hell!"

Aeris was tending the flowers in the church when she heard the doors to the church burst open. She stood and spun round in fright and saw two men carrying another man into the church. She instantly recognised the man from before, Cloud but it took her a few more moments to register the black spiky hair that belong to...

"Zack!" Both Cloud and Zack turned towards the sound of the voice.

"AERIS!" Zack yelled letting go of younger Cloud leaving older Cloud to carry him by himself as he ran over to Aries and hugged her tight. Aeris cried into Zack's chest and Zack just held her. Cloud carried his younger self to a nearby bench and laid him down gently before turning back to see Zack and Aeris still embracing each other, the happiness on each others faces. Cloud just remained silent not wanting to interrupt their happiness and it warmed his heart seeing two of the people he held close to his heart so happy.

A flash of light beamed through the window and the sound of a helicopter filled the area. Listening more closely Cloud could hear various shouts of military personal yelling at their subordinates. Zack and Aeris had broken apart at the sound of the commotion. Cloud cursed out loud, how could he forget that Aeris was under surveillance! They wouldn't have brought all this man power to capture Aries but for Zack and himself...he had blown a hole in the security gate on his way to save Zack, they must have caught him on camera and had the whole place on high alert when he and Zack returned.

"They've come for me!" Aeris cried.

"What? Why are they after you?" Zack asked.

"Because she's a Cetra! But their not here for her their here for me! In hurry to rescue you I attacked a security out post. They must have spotted us coming in here."

"How do you know I'm a Cetra? You work for Shin-Ra don't you!" Aries cried.

"What the hell is a Cetra and why do Shin-Ra want her because of it?" Zack interrupted.

"That doesn't matter! Zack take Cloud Aeris to safety, we'll meet at Aeris's house when I lose them!"

"How do you know where I live? Who the hell are you!"

" Aeris babe not now, I'll explain when we get to safety but take my word for it when I say we can trust him. Cloud, we're counting on you, don't die!" Zack and Aeris picked up Clouds younger self and proceeded to the back of the church, the same route that he and Aeris had taken in the past when she had hired him as a body guard. Once they were out of sight Cloud drew First Tsurugi and reached into his pouch for his Materia. He placed a Barrier Materia into his bracer and moved his Lightning Materia into his sword along with an All Materia. He reached into his pouch again and pulled out a Sense Materia and placed it in his bracer along with the Barrier and activated it.

The Sense Materia glowed as it activated and Cloud could sense the Soldiers on the other side of the walls, they were surrounding the place. He sensed a large group approaching the door and got into a battle stance, First Tsurugi held out in front of him. The doors opened and two squads of soldiers with rifles flooded in taking up firing positions on either side of the door and another three figure walked in standing between the two squads. Cloud recognised the uniform of SOLDIER immediately, two 3rd Class SOLDIERS stood either side of Tseng who looked as calm as ever, wearing the infamous suit of the Turks that Cloud had never seen the man without.

"Where is the girl?" Tseng asked, but it was a demand more than a question.

"I don't know who you're talking about."

"We know she was here, but if she isn't here any more then it makes our job easier. Earlier tonight a man matching your description was seen attacking a security gate killing two of the guards. We are here to arrest you. What I didn't expect was to find that man we were looking for to be a member of SOLDIER." Tseng said calmly.

"I'm afraid you're mistaken, I don't work for Shin-Ra." Cloud growled.

"A deserter then? I had not been informed that there we're any current deserters since the war. No matter. Come quietly and you won't get hurt."

"I'm afraid I'm going to half to decline your offer!" Cloud charged the Lightning Materia in his his sword and instantly the two SOLDIERS flanking Tseng leapt into action, shoving the man out the door and leaping high into the air as Cloud unleashed his attack. Swinging First Tsurugi Cloud sent a out an arc of lightning which combined with the All Materia widened the spells attack consuming the two squads of soldiers with rifles, either killing them out right or incapacitating them. Glass shattered from the force of the spell and wood splintered and burned.

Finishing his spell Cloud quickly turned his attention to the two SOLDIERs, one landing on either side of the church and sprinting towards him trying to catch him in a pincer attack. With well practised timing both Soldiers attacked cloud simultaneously with their swords. Cloud dodged one and blocked the other before spinning away and back flipping away over the flowers to land on the opposite side of them. Both SOLDIERs began to side step around the patch of flowers weapons at the ready as they measured their opponent. Cloud knew he could take these guys out no problem but a part of him didn't want to damage the flowers that lay between the three of them, he had grown attached to the flowers in the years following Meteor, his last link to Aeris.

But Aeris was alive now, and he would make sure that it stayed that way. Cloud's Sense Materia alerted him to the presence of more people approaching the main entrance of the church. He had to take this fight else where. Reaching into his pouch again he felt around the few remaining Materia for the one he was looking for till he found it, he was so familiar with his Materia that he knew them by touch. Quickly pulling the Materia out and slipping into his sword with expert ease Cloud charged a haste spell. Seeing Cloud pull out a Materia the SOLDIERs reacted leapt forward but they didn't reach him in time. As the SOLDIERs were in mid air Cloud's spell activated and he threw himself into the air straight at them.

He felt a surge of magic wash over him, a sleep spell. Ribbon negated the spell before it could take effect and Cloud Swung First Tsurugi in wide sweeping attack which the SOLDIERs blocked with their own swords but the force of Cloud's attack caused them to be sent crashing into the rows of benches that littered the church. Cloud landed on the other side of the flower patch and sprinted full pelt towards the door of the church charging another Lightning spell.

Zack and Aeris were climbing onto the roof of the church when an explosion rocked the building.

"Looks like its started." Zack said passing Cloud down to Aeris before stepping on to the roof himself and taking him back.

"Who is he? And why does this person look exactly like him? Is he his brother or something?" Aries asked.

"Yeah, something like that."

"Will he be okay?"

"He's no push over but there is a major amount of fire power down there. We'll just have to hope that he'll pull through." Zack answered. "Come on, lets get out of here before we get spotted."

Another Squad of infantry appeared at the door the same time Cloud did and they screamed as First Tsurugi tore through them like a hot knife through butter. Cloud skidded to a stop and unleashed his fully charged lightning spell, thanks to haste it increased the rate the spells charged. The church was surrounded by numerous vans and trucks that was used to transport the troops here and about two dozen men surrounded the area. Swinging his sword Cloud unleashed the spell which struck most of the men and vehicles, a couple of vehicles exploded taking out the men hiding behind them while about half of the men were killed or incapacitated from the spell. The helicopter buzzed over head, the flood lights blinding Cloud momentarily before a hail of bullets rained down on Cloud from the helicopter.

Turning on his heel Cloud sprinted for cover bullets nipping at his heels as the ground exploded in a cloud of dust from the shower of lead from the sky. Cloud leap behind one of the scrap piles just in the nick of time to avoid being peppered by gunfire. The helicopter ceased fire and it began to circle round to get a new angle for attack.

As the helicopter circled round Cloud leap on top of the scrap pile putting him at equal height to the helicopter. Cloud raised First Tsurugi over his head and saw the look of fear and surprise at the pilot of the helicopter just before unleashing a Blade Beam at them. The Slice hurtled through the air and the pilot tried to pull away but it was already to late, the attack crashed into the helicopter and tore through the metal, Cloud heard the inhabitants of the helicopter scream just before it exploded and crashed into the ground in a blazing fireball. The helicopter actually crashed blocking the way from any of the other Shin-Ra forces that had gathered at the church from getting to him so Cloud took the opportunity to escape.

Tseng watched as the Blond man that had just decimated the Shin-Ra forces leap away into the night, his men unable to follow due to the blazing wreckage of the helicopter blocking the path. Tseng was seething, but he did not show it outwardly. He looked as calm and collected as ever. Turning back to the church he saw the two 3rd Class SOLDIERs he'd brought with him limping out of the building. Who ever that blond man was was not to be underestimated and Tseng knew that next time they crossed paths that he wouldn't. Taking a handkerchief form his pocket he mopped the trail of blood coming from the small gash on his forehead. As he was doing this his PHS rang. Slipping it from his pocket he flipped it open and answered it knowing full well who it was.

"Tseng here."

"Tseng, what is happening down there? I hear you went to apprehend some one and now I'm getting reports of a war zone!"

"Sorry Mr President. The man proved to be a more dangerous opponent that initially thought."

"I assume that you have caught him then?"

"No, sir. Despite the 5 squads of infantry and two members of SOLDIER I took to apprehend the man considering his proximity to the Cetra he managed to not only escape but wipe out most of the force." There was a silence on the other end of the line as the President obviously read the situation at hand. "The man appeared to be a member of SOLDIER himself."

"A member of SOLDIER? Are you sure?"

"Yes sir. I have little doubt. He had the mark of someone in SOLDIER, his strength and combat prowess leads me to believe he is at least a 2nd Class if not on par with a 1st Class SOLDIER." Tseng knew that the man wasn't a 1st Class as he knew all of their files as they make sure the Turks do a back ground check on every member of SOLDIER before they are officially accepted and before they get promoted to 1st Class considering the previous strings of desertion in the 1st Class ranking. There were only a handful of people even currently ranked 1st Class.

"I want you to use every resource available to ensure that this individual is neutralised. If you are unable to capture him then you are to exterminate him. If he has connections to the Cetra then we can not allow him to remain at large."

"Yes Sir. I will deal with this situation personally." The line went dead after that and Tseng dialled a number.

"Reno here, what's shaking?" Came the care free tone of the Turk.

"RENO!"

"Tseng!" A string of silent curses could be heard as Reno realised who was on the phone. Tseng was always on at him for him casual attitude that he felt was not becoming of a Turk. "Sir. What can I do for you?"

"I want you to gather all senior members of the Turks for a meeting in my office in an hour! I have an assignment of the highest priority."

"Right away!" Tseng hung up and gazed at the spot that he had last seen the mysterious blond warrior.

"Who are you?"

Cloud managed to make it to Aeris house, it took longer than expected but he wanted to make absolutely sure no one was following him or watching the house before he approached. Not wanting to stand outside and risk getting spotted Cloud walked straight in with out knocking and found Aeris and Zack sitting round the kitchen table. Zack grabbed his sword as he heard Cloud enter but relaxed instantly upon seeing him.

"Cloud! Man, I'm glad to see you're all right! There was a serious amount of man power back there!" Zack said grasping Cloud's shoulder with one hand.

"Thanks. I've been in rougher situations though."

"I'll say, you're nothing like the Cloud that's up stairs. He has a lot of potential and looking at you I can see just how much. I wonder if I'd be able to beat you." Zack laughed.

"Where is Cloud and Elmyra? Is she okay with us staying here?"

"Elmyra is up stairs with Cloud" Zack answered.

"How do you know my mothers name? How do you know where I live? How do you know I'm a Cetra and who are you?" Aeris questioned.

"I'm guessing you didn't tell her Zack." Cloud said.

"HEY! Give me a break! I barely believe it! I thought it was best if you explained what was what because I have a lot of questions of my own Cloud."

"And that's another thing, why are both you and the other blond haired man both called Cloud? Is that some weird family thing because it's obvious that you two are related and you definitely not old enough to be his father so are you his older brother?" Aeris questioned some more getting a little moody since Cloud still had to answer her previous questions.

"All right, the truth is Aeris..." Cloud paused as he saw Elmyra come down the stairs. Elmyra looked Cloud up and down and furrowed her brow.

"Okay, I'm wanting some answers of my own as well. From both of you!" Elmyra said firmly, the tone of voice only a mother could use.

"This is gonna take a while..." Cloud muttered and took a seat at the table and everyone else did the same.

"My name is Cloud Strife, and I'm from the future."

"The future? What do you mean?" Elmyra asked.

"About 5 years from now I will find a strange anomaly and I got sucked in and ended up here...roughly 5 years into the past."

"That is probably the most ridiculous thing I ever heard!" Elmyra stated.

"I know it's hard to believe but it's true. In fact the young man upstairs is me...5 years earlier."

"But..." Elmyra stuttered but Cloud continued.

"5 years ago, in my time line, Zack managed to break us out of a secret Shin-Ra lab where we had been captured and experimented on for 4 years." Aeris looked at Zack with a pained and worried expression, Zack just nodded to the truth of the statement. "Just before we reached Midgar Shin-Ra found us and in my current state as you can tell I was in no fit state to help. Zack fought the attackers but ended up dying trying to save me." Aeris gasped and looked at Zack with disbelief.

"It's true. If Cloud here hadn't shown up when he did I wouldn't be here right now."

"So you've changed the past." Elmyra stated, more trying to convince herself

"Yes. I want to change the past to try and improve the future."

"I can understand saving Zack and everything, and I am truly grateful you did but...is the future really that bad?" Aeris questioned.

"It was...more than Zack died during the fighting..." Cloud said quietly giving Aeris a pained look. After a few silent moments Aeris understood the implication of his words.

"You mean...I..."

"Yes...I'm sorry. I...I wasn't strong enough to save you then."

"How..." Aeris asked only to have her mother snap at her.

"AERIS! Don't ask! I don't want to hear how you're going to..."

"But Mother! Zack is alive now! That means there is no guarantee that I will actually die! Cloud how did I die?"

"Sephiroth killed you." Everyone around the table gasped at the mention of the legendary warriors name.

"SEPHIROTH! I thought he was dead!" Zack yelled. The painful memories of Nibelheim resurfacing.

"Why would Sephiroth kill me?"

"Because...at the time you were the only one who was capable of stopping him. As the last living Cetra you gave your life trying to find away to stop him destroying the planet."

"So...Sephiroth is still alive then?" Zack asked anger evident in his tone.

"Yes. I wouldn't be surprised if he was in Midgar already."

"What is he going to do in Midgar?" Elmyra asked fearful for her daughters life.

"He will come and steal the remains of Jenova...his mother and then kill Shin-Ra's current president. I need to stop him sooner rather than later before too many people lose their lives."

"How do you plan on taking out Sephiroth? The man is the strongest warrior in the history of Shin-Ra. Even amongst the SOLDIER, Shin-Ra's most powerful military force he was a legend!" Elmyra said beginning to panic.

"I'm going to kill him myself."

"How?"

"Because I've done it before...twice."

"What do you mean twice? You mean back in the Nibelheim reactor?" Zack asked.

"No...after I beat him...the first time, a group manage to revive him 4 years later."

"I'm...having a hard time believing all this...I'm sorry." Elmyra spluttered, tears threatening to fall from her eyes as she ran up the stairs.

"Ma!" Aeris chased after her mother.

"Man...Okay then Cloud, how are we going to do this?" Zack asked.

"What?"

"How are we gonna save the world?"

"Well...first we need to deal with Sephiroth but there is also Jenova and Hojo to worry about. But now I have Tseng and half the Shin-Ra army chasing me. Plus I don't know if Yuffie is trapped in this time line with me or not."

"Yuffie?"

"She was one of the group that helped to beat Sephiroth. She was with me when I got transported here. If she is here I need to find her."

"All right. What about...well you know...you? I mean your past self...the present you...man this is confusing!"

"I don't know...he'll recover in a couple of days but because circumstances have changed I don't know how things will turn out. It wasn't exactly plain sailing..."

"I understand...I think I do anyway."

"We'll need to get him out of Midgar in any case. We can't leave him here because Shin-Ra are looking for me and may mistake him for me. God only knows what would happen if they got their hands on him."

"This is getting really complicated really quickly."

"I think...I'm going to have to recruit the help of a few old friends." Cloud said before standing up and leaving, Zack gave him a confused look before running after him.


End file.
